Common test-platform family for module, board, and sub-assembly level test

As defense industry procurement budgets continue to decrease and contractor consolidation increases, the demand for cost effective and timely product testing and efficient test facility utilization increases. To reduce the product test cost and cycle-time and test-facility space requirements, the Raytheon Missile Systems Test-Systems-Design-Center (TSDC) developed and implemented the Standard Test Equipment Platform (STEP) family. The STEP family consists of the Analog STEP (ANSTEP), Analog/Digital STEP (ADSTEP), Radio Frequency (RF) STEP (RFSTEP), and Infra-red (IR) STEP (IRSTEP). The family is capable of testing electronic modules, boards, and sub-assemblies in the analog and low-level digital; digital simulation generation; intermediate frequency, RF, and microwave; and IR regimes. This paper presents: 1. The STEP approach to reducing product-test cost, cycle-time, and facility requirements, 2. The history and development of the STEP family, 3. A technical overview of each member of the STEP family, and 4. The implementation of the STEP family as if relates to reducing product-test, cost cycle-time, and facility requirements while meeting difficult test requirements; influencing standardized test requirements; providing extensive test-level capability; providing a wide stimulus, switching, and measurement capability; establishing an easily integrated common technical data package; and ensuring a clear expansion/evolution path.